Buying 20" iMac

[no-direction]

Hi everyone! Being a long time lurker of MacRumors forums and a long admirer of Macs I finally decided to go ahead and buy my first iMac last October but held off until MWSF just in-case some updates were announced.

Now, having been waiting for so long there's one part of me that just wants to go and put in an order today, yet another part wants to wait just in-case there's some sort of update imminent. I've heard that there's a possibility that some updates would be released soon, though whether or not this was just the pre-MWSF conjecture I don't know. The only thing is that I don't want to buy an iMac only for it to become obsolete in a few weeks time. Another reason I was thinking of waiting was to get the 2007 versions of iLife and iWork but these don't appear to have even had an announcement - although I did read a rumour somewhere saying that iWork 07 was going to require Leopard, which again I don't want to buy an iMac with Tiger only to upgrade to Leopard so that I can use iWork'07 in a few months time.

I realise that the iMacs that are out at the moment are probably fine for my everyday computing needs, it's just that I would really like to get the viewpoints of some other people before I go ahead and buy one soon!

Thanks!

 

[emptyCup]

If you want to wait until Spring for Leopard then that is a pretty sure thing. You will probably hit an upgrade too. However any machine you buy today is not going to be obsolete when the next one comes out. Optherwise we would all have to buy new computers every 6 months.

 

[valdore]

I'll be in the market for an iMac as soon as they update it again -- be it a new form factor or a better processor -- or hopefully both at the same time.

 

[Reflow]

Well I would not wait and just buy it. It would be the best thing you have ever done

 

[Hls811]

Do it.. all the cool kids are.

 

[FullCollapse]

hey man, i just received my refund from a defective refurbished 20" model. i'm going today to buy a brand spankin' new one. i go to back to school on sunday and i was not planning on having this money by then, so i was planning on waiting for ilife 07. but it's not worth it for me to wait, so off to spend entirely too much money in one place i go!

 

[Gaelic1]

If you want to wait until Spring for Leopard then that is a pretty sure thing. You will probably hit an upgrade too. However any machine you buy today is not going to be obsolete when the next one comes out. Optherwise we would all have to buy new computers every 6 months.

Steve did say that there would be some amazing things for the Mac in several months. I am also going to purchase the 20" Imac but I will wait for a few months for a possible upgrade, iLife 07 and iWork 07, and of course the new OS. My G5 tower works just fine for now so I can wait but if you always wait for the upgrade, you lose the opportunity for a great experience with a Mac.

 

[Killyp]

Macs never become obsolete.

I have an 8 year old iMac, G3 processor (the very first iMac to come out), and it's still completely supported. It will probably lose support when Leopard comes out, but that's not an issue, there are ways round that...

Still runs very nicely too!

 

[napos]

Just ordered a 24" iMac from Amazon.

Out of pocket: $1749 vs $2139 (with taxes from Apple).

- $150 off Amex/Amazon coupon
- $100 mail in rebate
- no tax
- free shipipng

 

[valdore]

Just ordered a 24" iMac from Amazon.

Out of pocket: $1749 vs $2139 (with taxes from Apple).

- $150 off Amex/Amazon coupon
- $100 mail in rebate
- no tax
- free shipipng

Interesting. I may be asking a dumb question, but how common is it to find better deals on mac computers with third parties rather than the Apple store or apple.com?

 

[no-direction]

Thanks for all the advice, it's nice to know that if I do opt for an iMac now that it won't become obsolete anytime soon - I'm impressed they still support the G3 iMacs! I think I'm going to give it a month or two but after that there's no way I think I'll be able to wait any longer - the 20" iMac's been on my shopping list a LONG time now!

 

[SteveG4Cube]

I have an 8 year old iMac, G3 processor (the very first iMac to come out), and it's still completely supported. It will probably lose support when Leopard comes out, but that's not an issue, there are ways round that...

According to Apple, you need a firewire and DVD equipped Mac to support Tiger. But as you said, there are ways around that...

 

[lasuther]

The only thing better than a 20"iMac is a 24"iMac.

 

[Edge100]

If you want to wait until Spring for Leopard then that is a pretty sure thing. You will probably hit an upgrade too. However any machine you buy today is not going to be obsolete when the next one comes out. Optherwise we would all have to buy new computers every 6 months.

My iMac is now officially one year old (2GHz iMac CD, 20"). I wouldn't know what to do with the extra speed of the new ones (I do audio work, and I still haven't run up against the limits of my iMac).

The only things I miss from the C2D iMacs is the FW800 option on the 24" and the 802.11n capability. Other than that, I'm still completely happy. I can't imagine a time in which I'll fret over the differences between my iMac and the current generation.

If you expect a major change, such as a new generation of processor or a new form factor, then I'd wait. For instance, I'm glad I didn't buy the 2.1GHz G5 iMac; waiting for MWSF 2006 was a good idea for me. But if this isn't the case (and I don't see Apple significantly altering the current iMac for some time), then I'd go for it. You could wait forever.

 

[Edge100]

Macs never become obsolete.

I have an 8 year old iMac, G3 processor (the very first iMac to come out), and it's still completely supported. It will probably lose support when Leopard comes out, but that's not an issue, there are ways round that...

Still runs very nicely too!

My 600MHz Graphite G3 iMac (early-2001 model) is sitting in the corner of my studio at the moment. The screen is a little flickery for my tastes, but it's still a great machine for everyday use. Same with my 500MHz iBook (Dual USB); well, this one is showing its age in Panther, but in OS9 it screams. Both of these machines are 6 years old, and both are fully capable everyday machines.

 

[Edge100]

The only thing better than a 20"iMac is a 24"iMac.

Or a 20" iMac plus a second 20" or 22" LCD display, giving you a LOT more pixels for the same price. Great solution if you (a) need as much screen real estate as possible, (b) have the desk space, and (c) don't need FW800.